636 entries categorized "Hispanic Websites"

Latin YouTube network MiTú has closed its Series B financing for $15 million and named two Demand Media executives to key positions.

MiTú announced Tuesday the addition of $5 million in funding, closing out its Series B financing to a total of $15 million. Network closed first $10 million in June 2014. The latests funding round was led by LA-based venture capital firm Upfront Ventures, Daher Capital, Northgate Ventures and AMC Networks Inc. including group of investors in MiTú’s Series A also participated.

MiTu, which focuses on the Latino audience, has also hired Martha E. Flores as chief editorial officer overseeing editorial across all platforms while Greg Griffin will head product development.

Flores previously served as vice president of editorial and restructured the at-scale production studio that launched content renovations for LiveSTRONG and eHow. Griffin was the original vice president of product for the social media company and also served as head of product for Spiritclips LLC, a division of Hallmark.

“By dedicating more resources to innovation, scale, creators and social, we will be able to continue developing content products to best serve today’s millennial audiences, anytime, anywhere and on any platform,” MiTú CEO Roy Burstin said in a statement.

In addition to new hires, MiTú also announced raising $15 million in a funding round led by LA-based venture capital firm Upfront Ventures, Daher Capital, Northgate Ventures and AMC Networks Inc. including group of investors in MiTú’s Series A also participated.

“In three years, MiTú has grown from concept to a Latino media powerhouse, with a global roster of content creators and social media influencers connecting massive audiences to brands and traditional content buyers,” Burstin said.

Funding will help kick off this year’s goal of expanding investment in technology, growing its editorial team and social media distribution on owned and operated platforms, MiTú said in a statement.

MiTú was founded in 2012 by Latino TV industry veterans Doug Greiff, Beatriz Acevedo, and Roy Burstin. It has amassed nearly 80 million global subscribers and around 700 million monthly views across more than 1,300 partner channels, totaling 12 billion global lifetime views.

BuzzFeed is now read proportionally more by Latinos than white Americans, the site's editor-in-chief Ben Smith announced in a memo to staff Tuesday.

Admitting that a year ago the site hadn't been trying hard enough to speak to the Latino experience, Smith said BuzzFeed made a concerted effort to produce more content targeting a community that represents an ever-growing number of young Americans.

"Our news reporting hadn’t had a particularly aggressive focus on one major issue of interest to U.S. Hispanics, immigration, or on the many other great stories about the broad group that now represents about 1 in 5 Americans in their twenties," Smith wrote in his memo. "With some usefully persistent urging from political reporter Adrian Carrasquillo, for whom this is a passion, we decided serving the Latino audience represented a big opportunity and went after it hard."

Smith credited BuzzFeed's coverage of immigration reform and the hardships faced by undocumented children for building the site's relationship with Latino readers, but also more viral content like its "20 Emojis All Latinos Could Use" listicle and posts on Día de los Muertos.

"There’s a tradition in American media of consigning minority groups to specialty publications, subsites and special verticals, and that can in fact be a powerful way of making sure those stories get told," Smith wrote. "For us, that would have been a missed opportunity."

In August, the National Association of Hispanic Journalists honored BuzzFeed at its annual Media Awards for "their work at accurately and fairly representing Latinos."

"[BuzzFeed's] reporting on Latinos has been out in front, covering our community with truly humanizing stories about Latinos fighting, protesting, fasting for immigration reform," the NAHJ wrote in a press release at the time. "The editorial staff doesn’t wait for politicians to argue in DC to write an immigration story. They don’t wait for national guard troops to get sent to the border to write a story. They go out and get it done."

This week, we take a look at one of the fastest-growing audience segments in online video, Hispanic viewers. This segment is becoming a powerhouse in the U.S. population, with overall spending power of $1.5 trillion--up from $1 trillion in 2010, according to numerous sources. And they're some of the most enthusiastic consumers of over-the-top video.

Advertisers have been well aware of the opportunity placed in front of them for more than a few years now. But it's not clear that they've been very successful grabbing the attention of the Hispanic demographic.

As we point out in our feature, Procter & Gamble, that purveyor of all things family-friendly, is the biggest spender on advertising to Hispanics, putting $335 million into campaigns specifically for this demographic in 2013. Other companies spent much less, with AT&T devoting under $125 million to Hispanic advertising and Dish Network spending $96.9 million. T-Mobile US dropped its spending in this area by 10 percent to $98 million.

However, in online advertising, AT&T achieved the most raw ad impressions on Latino-focused sites, at 1.89 million for the year, with P&G in second place with 1.33 million impressions. One could look at those results in more than a couple of ways: smartphones are very popular among Hispanics, and AT&T's online advertising may have appealed to them more than P&G's ads. AT&T may also have targeted its ads toward U.S. Hispanic culture, with the result that online, the carrier got a better return for the amount of money it spent.

Unfortunately, that's a whole lot of "maybes" being put forth. What analysts and research firms do know is that Hispanics skew younger than the average U.S. population, that they are very technologically savvy, and that they stream more online video than almost any other group in the U.S.

A Horowitz Associates study released in January found that Hispanics are much more likely than the average U.S. viewer to watch online video on services other than the big three SVOD players, Netflix, Amazon and Hulu Plus. They're 16 percent more likely than the average U.S. population to utilize free streaming services, and 9 percent more likely to use a TV Everywhere-type of app.

Further, they've rapidly adopted multiscreen platforms: Three out of 10 Hispanic viewers surveyed by Horowitz said they prefer watching video on a smaller screen even when a TV was available, and 37 percent said they'll often watch something on a smaller device when someone else in the room is watching another screen, such as a TV.

With that level of enthusiasm for online video, and growing economic clout, it's interesting that few large-scale OTT options have emerged for the Hispanic audience. There is certainly some TV Everywhere available such as Univision's viewing app, and at least one breakout YouTube multichannel network, but the Hispanic viewer still has to search to find content he or she wants to watch online.

In our latest feature we take a look at some of the numbers around Hispanic viewing, and explore the challenge of reaching this diverse segment with meaningful advertising and online content.

Latinos, blacks and whites use social media networks about equally, but there are some differences in their preferences for specific social media sites. For example, Instagram is more popular among Latinos while Pinterest is more popular among whites, according to a late 2014 Pew Research Center survey.

Today, about eight-in-ten Latino, black and white adults who are online use at least one of five social media sites – Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, LinkedIn and Twitter. Among these, Facebook stands out as the most widely used platform, regardless of race or ethnicity: About seven-in-ten adult internet users (71%) say they use the site.

But there are differences by race and ethnicity in the use of other social media sites, in particular Instagram. The photo-sharing site is more popular among Hispanic and black internet users than among white internet users. About one-third (34%) of online Hispanics use Instagram, as do 38% of blacks. By comparison, only 21% of whites use the network.

Instagram’s popularity among younger adults is notable. For example, roughly half (53%) of online adults ages 18 to 29 use the service, compared with 25% of those ages 30 to 49, 11% of those ages 50 to 64 and 6% of those 65 and older. This is worth noting when looking at social media use by race and ethnicity since Latinos are significantly younger than other groups. More than a decade separates the median age of Latinos (27) and whites (42), while the median age for blacks is 33.

By contrast, the social media site Pinterest is more popular among white internet users than among other groups. About one-third (32%) of whites use Pinterest, compared with 21% of Hispanics and just 12% of blacks. LinkedIn differs in that about equal shares of whites (29%) and blacks (28%) use the site, compared with 18% of Hispanics. Meanwhile, Twitter has a more equal distribution. About one-in-four Hispanics and blacks use the site, along with 21% of whites.

Fresh off the announcement that it has greenlit an untitled project from YouTube star Freddie Wong and Lionsgate, Hulu has now picked up five more titles, including a new series starring YouTubers Josh Levya and David Alvarez, from Univision’s bicultural over-the-top video service Flama.

The centerpiece of the syndication deal between the companies is “Saving Lives,” which stars Levya and Alvarez as two overconfident but innocent college-aged bros who troll the beach for babes and largely ignore their jobs as lifeguards. The first-run series, spanning six total episodes, premiered yesterday and will air new episodes every Thursday on Hulu Latino and Flama.

As far back as last year’s Newfronts presentation, Hulu’s focus on dominating the hispanic market has been apparent. This licensing deal with Flama to host new episodes of “Saving Lives,” as well as all episodes of existing web series like ”Taking on America,” “Drop the Mic with Becky G,” “Chachi’s Dance to Uforia,” and “The Bodega,” furthers the company’s push in the hispanic market. As with “Saving Lives,” all of the other series included in the licensing pact will be available via Hulu Latino.

“We are proud of our pioneering partnership with Hulu,” said Steven Benanav, GM of Flama, in a statement. “From Univision joining Hulu in 2012 as the anchor network for its first Spanish offering to now working with them to launch English-language Flama originals, this newest venture is a perfect partnership.”

Evidence of the premium streaming platform’s success in the demo first surfaced on the back of the success of Hulu Original “East Los High,” which has aired for three seasons exclusively on Hulu.

Univision’s Flama was developed in partnership with Bedrocket, Brian Bedol’s technology and media company. The companies teamed to launch an bicultural platform targeted at 15-30 year olds in 2013. Today, Flama content reaches 10 million people per month across platforms, according to a Univision spokesperson.

The first of many Facebook-organized multicultural learning sessions in New York City was just one of several events marking the Hispanic tipping point -- a moment when the importance of U.S. Hispanic and the multicultural media landscape became as well-regarded as the mainstream general market.

The conference, which was held in October 2014 and spoke on "tradigital" media, was attended by well over 200 experts and professionals who work in U.S. Hispanic and multicultural marketing, publishing and media.

Attendees were granted a sneak peek into a study, "Digital Diversity: A Closer Look at US Hispanics," which unveiled the digital lives of multicultural consumers and self-identified Hispanics in the U.S. The research determined Hispanics are highly active social media users and mobile users because they use that digital space to interact with friends and family; to celebrate the celebratory moments of their diverse lives; and to spark and continue conversations about the countless brands they follow.

The rich insights offered by the $200 billion social media platform helped marketers connect to multicultural consumers via data that showcases Hispanic Facebook behavior. Monthly, U.S. Hispanics do the following:

Generate 8.49 billion likes, 1.7x index vs. general market

Write 1.52 billion comments, 1.7x Index

Upload 450 million photos, 1.6x Index

Create 159 million status updates, 1.8x Index

Upload 7.1 million videos, 3.0 Index

The numbers show Hispanics spend a great deal of time online expressing their interests, sharing their opinions and telling their stories. And Hispanic consumers' decision to tell their own stories on Facebook is valuable to marketers. By sharing their lives, their joys and their relationships, marketers can leverage that information, and they can create a story of their own through branding. With that, they can catch the eye of their target audience in a way that's genuine and meaningful, and it will likely drove growth.

The long-term effectiveness of this outreach is untold, but with 26 million Hispanic monthly average users, Facebook's reach is comparable to Univision (32.7 million) and Telemundo (27.9 million). Through use of impressive video products, Hispanics frequently interact with videos posted online, making Facebook a practical option for marketers who are looking to connect with consumers. Also, Hispanics spend an average of 35 minutes on Facebook and 11 minutes on Instagram on their mobile devices (representing 21 percent of Hispanic's mobile time). Comparably, Hispanics spend just 0.70 minutes on their mobiles on Univision properties.

Facebook is the go-to platform for U.S. Hispanics when looking to communicate. According to aforementioned study, 71 percent of U.S. Hispanics use Facebook to connect with loved ones each day and nearly half (48 percent) of "friends" are family members (compared to 36 percent for the total population). Also, Facebook Messenger is frequently used by 60 percent of U.S. Hispanics who are with family and friends outside of the U.S.

What does this mean to marketers? Videos and ads that appear in the News Feed capture the interests of 56 percent of U.S. Hispanics' interest. Also, bilingual Hispanics and Spanish-dominant Hispanics are the most receptive to video ads, particularly female users. To reach this audience, strategist must offer culturally relevant content that uses imagery, language and a compelling brand story.

If the company is Hispandering, it’s also mompandering and corporationpandering.

New top level domain name registries offering regional, niche, or cultural domains, take note: the people you’re targeting might take it the wrong way.

That’s apparently the case with .soy. Google’s new domain name isn’t targeted to yuppies who don’t like cow’s milk. It’s targeted to the Hispanic community. “Soy” is Spanish for “I am”.

But some people in the community think the effort is misguided. That, or they needed something to write about this past week when .soy came across their desk.

A Fox News Latino article aks “Google’s new .SOY domain: Code for segregation or source of Latino pride?”. It says Google should just hire more Hispanics rather than offering them a new top level domain name on the web.

This article in RedEye Chicago says Google is “Hispandering to a special level”.

Apparently .com and .net weren’t big enough for everyone, so Google decided to create a separate area of the Internet for Latinos to listen to salsa music, share enchilada recipes and do whatever else Latinos do…

…Latinos aren’t asking to be treated differently; quite the contrary, we’re simply asking to be treated the same. Latinos don’t want their own special corner of the Internet.

And a handful of people on Twitter said Google was segregating Latinos.

Wait. What?

Tell that to the LGBTQ “community”, which is pissed off at ICANN for not handing it its own place on the web with .gay.

If the Hispanic community thinks Google is pandering to them, they’re going to be really miffed to find out that Google and other companies are “pandering” to the Japanese (.みんな – everyone), moms (.mom) and corporations (.inc).

They’ll be surprised to find out that Hotels (successfully) argued that they should have their own home on the web. So did the “eco” community, which apparently doesn’t include people like me who just like to recycle.

I bet the people of New York are upset that they’re being “segregated” online with the new .nyc domain name.

Apparently controversy can be good, however. Google’s .soy video (below) has been viewed over 600,000 times, making it the most popular new TLD video to date. About 1 in 450 of them have purchased a .soy domain (it has 1,308 names in the zone).

Accion Texas Inc. has launched a new website to provide its Spanish-speaking clients with a more user-friendly experience.

The San Antonio-based non-profit micro-lender collaborated with Sweb Development, a local digital marketing development agency, to create the new Spanish language website with improved navigation and functionality.

"Accion is dedicated to adapting and improving to meet the growing demand for small businesses and entrepreneurs," said Accion Texas President and CEO Janie Barrera.

By providing web access in multiple languages, Barrera said, it levels the playing field for all entrepreneurs to succeed. Accion currently serves more than 60 percent of Hispanics throughout its eight-state footprint.

Accion has made more than 14,000 loans totaling more than $167 million since it was founded in 1994.

Google has launched a new domain, .SOY, targeted at a Latino audience.

In Spanish, “soy” means “I am”—but in English, of course, it refers to the beans that make soymilk and tofu possible. That’s probably why it confused English speaking vegans and vegetarians, who also feel they have a claim to the word.

But that’s not all.

While Google claims that “.SOY is the place for Latinos online,” some are wondering if and why it’s necessary for the corporation to develop a domain that virtually segregates Latinos into one domain—but fails to truly include Latinos where it counts, with jobs. Over at Cosmopolitan, Alanna Nunez writes:

If Google really wants to reach Latinos in a meaningful way, .soy probably isn’t the answer. Why doesn’t Google (I’m looking at you too, Apple and Intel, both of whom have also come under fire for a lack of diversity) examine its own hiring practices? Google’s latest Diversity Report stated that its U.S. workforce is only 3 percent Hispanic and 2 percent black. Moreover, a 2014 study from nonprofit Working Partnerships USA suggests that Silicon’s Valley’s “invisible workforce” — made up of people in low-paying roles such as janitors, security guards, and landscape workers at big tech companies such as Google, among others — is dominated by blacks and Latinos, while technical roles are overwhelmingly white and Asian.

Over at Latino Rebels, meanwhile, Roberto Lovato points out the geographic irony of Silicon Valley’s failure to engage Latinos:

How can a company based in parts of the United States where the overwhelming majority of the country’s 50 million Latinos live, be so border-walled off from the physical, geographic and cultural reality just outside its gates, so self-absorbed in the virtual world where it is king? Another equally pointed question has to do with us, specifically with where and how Latinos relate to the Digital Darwinism that is (again) shuffling and redefining the social and economic positions of Latinos and us all.

In searching for an answer, there’s no better place to find it than here in the Bay Area birthplace of the digital economy. Whether in the area around Twitter headquarters, in the biotech labs surrounding the soon-to-be World Champion (again!) Giants’ stadium or in the former farmlands where I saw Latino farm workers harvesting fruits and vegetables pushed out by mostly non-Latino workers and companies harvesting the new crop (enormous wealth and astonishing class divisions), the genetically-modifying ethic and the spirit in Google’s .SOY capitalism is clear: We will define you for you—if you let us.

Still, other Latinos are participating in Google’s Latino domain. Latino.soy, for example, is creating a clearinghouse of Latino startups and what it calls “inclusive investors,” which indicates a given venture capitalist’s interest in backing people of color.

Google has just launched .soy, a new web domain aimed at its Latino users, and while the response so far has been pretty hilarious, this feels like nothing more than simple pandering. Thanks for trying, Google!People on Twitter pointed out that .soy is confusing (unless, who knows, maybe Google is trying to market the new domain to lactose-intolerant, vegan Latinos?), while others suggested the launch of the domain promotes "virtual segregation." After all, Google hasn't launched a domain specifically for Asians or African-Americans. Plus, what's wrong with .com? Plenty of Latinos already use that and find it just fine.

The word "soy" "describes the essence of Latino identity," Google's official launch ad says. "It expresses who you are, where you're from, what you do, and where you're going. The Internet now has domain that celebrates and empowers the Latino spirit."

If Google really wants to reach Latinos in a meaningful way, .soy probably isn't the answer. Why doesn't Google (I'm looking at you too, Apple and Intel, both of whom have also come under fire for a lack of diversity) examine its own hiring practices? Google's latest Diversity Report stated that its U.S. workforce is only 3 percent Hispanic and 2 percent black. Moreover, a 2014 study from nonprofit Working Partnerships USA suggests that Silicon's Valley's "invisible workforce" — made up of people in low-paying roles such as janitors, security guards, and landscape workers at big tech companies such as Google, among others — is dominated by blacks and Latinos, while technical roles are overwhelmingly white and Asian.

And STEM careers in general still tend to be mostly white and male. In fact, in 2010, Latina women made up only 2 percent of science and engineering roles nationwide, while white men made up 51 percent of engineers nationwide and white women made up 18 percent.

In the past, Google acknowledged that it's trying to increase diversity and has even launched initiatives, such as Made with Code (though to be fair, lack of diversity in tech isn't just Google's problem), to encourage high school girls to follow their interest in science and tech subjects. And that's something, it really is. Still, Google says that it wants to "empower and celebrate the Latino spirit." If that's really the case, the company should push more for an end to the institutionalized barriers that have kept Latinas — and women in general — out of STEM fields, rather than focus its energy on a domain that makes no sense.